For Srijit Mukherji, his college days are a mix of “fascinating musical sessions, great learning and unlearning and unconditional friendship and love”. His film X=Prem, which releases on June 3, is a love story that also draws from his college life. The Telegraph chat...
X=Prem is a love story. There are love songs in the film. But Anupam Roy hasn’t composed these songs. He is not a part of this film. Is Anupam the ‘ex’ here?!
(Laughs out loud) Anupam is not the ex. Anupam is the prem. And there have been times when Anupam had composed love songs for a love story and I wasn’t a part of it. So it’s fine! For X= Prem I wanted a fresh sound, cast, a new composer (Saptak Sanai Das). At the end of the day it is also about what you give back to the industry. I have always taken newcomers in terms of the cast or crew. For this film, it has been a surplus.
The songs of X= Prem have become really popular. How did you come across Saptak?
I saw him performing the song Cinderella mon on this YouTube channel. I was blown away. I called him up, and asked him if he would like to work with me. And he sent me 12 songs and they were fairly well-recorded. I immediately locked nine songs for two of my films. That’s how we began. He composed Bhalobashar morshum for this film. Sanai brings a fresh approach to melody making. I really like the upbeat spirit of the melodies. There’s an interesting mix of retro and contemporary.
We see the character played by Arjun Chakrabarty keeping an eye out for this girl. Did that happen with you in college?
That’s everyone! In the college chapters, various adventures and escapades are directly from my college and university life (Presidency College and Jawaharlal Nehru University). I’ll be getting a lot of phone calls once this film comes out!
How were you in college?
I was playing a lot of cricket then, getting first-class marks. From debate, canteen adda sessions, prem, antakshari to eating out, everything was there. First love happened in high school and then I experienced the first rejection in college. Then the same girl proposed and I rejected... and later accepted.
What was the concept of love for you in college?
Love meant togetherness, going to college together, exploring new things together... the first kiss, intimacy.
How did the concept of love change for you when you became a successful film-maker?
Love ages... love is like a human being, and it ages just like one... love gets wrinkles, it wears glasses... love evolves with time. Love is also about companionship. But the lover inside never dies. If that person dies, I will not be able to write any scripts... or love songs. You need to have a lover living inside. Love is a combination of memories, and it is central to the plot of X=Prem.
Since the X from the title denotes an unknown person or an ex, how did you deal with a break-up in the past?
After a point of time only the good memories remain. X=Prem takes off from where Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind finishes. Eternal... was about the deletion of memories. My film talks about memory harvesting... memory transplant.
How did you deal with a break-up when you were making one film after another?
I immerse myself in work. Once you age, your expression after a break-up is different. You deal with it in a different way. I have worked with that person after a break-up. My compartments are absolutely water-tight. There are people who have maligned and harmed me, and I know they have... and the next week I have gone to them with offers of a role. In college, it was very different.
Madhurima and Arjun in X=Prem, which releases on June 3
How did you get over a break-up in college? Did you seek solace in art?
Music was my go-to place. Cricket was my go-to place. These were my recovery mechanisms. And friends.
You say that you would immerse yourself in work. Wasn’t it difficult to write?
No, it used to build a reservoir of emotions and feelings to dig deep to capture a certain moment for your work.
Were you dealing with happy memories while writing X=Prem or was there a sense of catharsis?
After a point of time you choose which memories will stay with you. If you choose to remain happy about someone, you can. It was a very utilitarian space when writing X=Prem. You take the memories which help you with the screenplay.
The script was originally titled Deja Vu....
Yes, and I wrote it in 2015-2016. I took it out during the lockdown, polished it and renamed it as X=Prem. There is a search for an unknown person. The concept of memory has always fascinated me... the concept of the memory of love coming back. And memory transplant will soon become a reality. In X=Prem there are two couples, and it is about finding the memory of love. Usually my thrillers have a love story angle. And this time a love story has a thriller angle. There is a sense of the unexpected.
Tell us about your cast....
For Arjun’s character, I wanted someone who is heroic and young. Arjun is one of the most promising actors we have today.
Anindya (Sengupta) had interviewed me, and I had really liked his presence and smartness. I cast him in two of my films. Shruti (Das) ... her face popped up while I was thinking of the cast. She has done a fantastic job. She takes instructions very well, and knows the craft. I first saw Madhurima (Basak) on a hoarding and was struck by her face. It has got enormous personality... very distinct. To my pleasant surprise I found out that she works in mega serials.
Why is X=Prem in black-and-white?
There is no intellectual justification to it. It was an aesthetic decision. This is my first full-fledged film in black-and-white, though there were black-and-white sections in Ek Je Chhilo Raja, Chotushkone and Gumnaami. Usually black-and-white is done based on the timeline of a story, for period pieces and flashbacks.
Though in Ek Je... I used the reverse principle. I used colour for flashback and black-and-white for the present. As a metaphor, I felt it went very well with the black-and-white nature of truth, which was being debated in court. In X= Prem it is purely a stylistic decision, purely aesthetic. I thought it would look very good visually. It would complement the story and the storytelling. It is a futuristic college romance so there are various timelines, there is a lot of mystery... lot of freshness to the cast, to the story. Black-and-white has its own charm, the visuals have their own magic, it is very exciting for me. Also it is my first venture with Subhankar (DoP) and we thought let’s make it special.
What are your final words to the readers?
I have made a love story after a long time. Please watch it... please encourage the new actors, the new composer, encourage new talent and help them bloom... that’s how an industry will grow.